Would you turn with me to the
book of Romans? Last week, we finished Genesis
19, and I've had this on my mind for about a month now. Paul,
you'll be interested. You asked me about bringing a
message on each epistle. I've had that on my mind so much,
and I am going to attempt to bring a message from each of
the epistles in the New Testament, one message that summarizes the
whole message. And we're going to look at the
book of Romans this morning. And I would request that you would
pray for me that I would be enabled to do this. I would request that
you would pray for yourself. that the Lord would speak to
you and deliver you from having your mind wander and hear what
this message says. Now, I read that passage from
Romans, I mean, from Job chapter 25. And like I said, it's supposed
to be the oldest book in the Bible. And it asks this question,
how can man be just with God? Now, if you say, well, I already
know the answer to that question. I question what you do just with
that attitude. How can man be just with God? How can he be clean, which is
born of a woman? Now it's my prayer through these
messages that the gospel would be preached, that God would be
glorified, that God's people be edified, and that sinners
will be brought to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. Now while Romans
was not the first epistle written, it's the first one given in the
New Testament. In this epistle of Romans, Paul
defines the gospel. Now that interests me. That interests
me. Well, I would not say it's more
important than any other epistle. I'm not able to do that. I would
say that there's none more important. And the main theme of Romans
is answering that question. How can a man be just before
God? How can he be clean, which is
born of woman? Now, let me give you some thoughts
that I think would help us in considering this. What would
you think of a judge who justified a criminal? You would say he's
unjust. He's not good. He does not deserve
to be in that position if he justifies people who are criminals.
Yet the scripture speaks of God justifying the ungodly. Now,
how can that be? Now in Romans chapter one, verse
11, Paul says to the Romans, I long to see you. You know,
he'd never met these people. He knew of them. but he'd never
met them. And he said, I long to see you. Look what he says in verse 14.
I'm a debtor. I'm a debtor, both to the Greeks and the barbarians,
both to the wise and to the unwise. I'm a debtor. This understanding
God has given me of the gospel, I'm indebted to bring that message
to you. That's what Paul's saying. Now,
if I understood how COVID could be cured and we wouldn't deal
with it anymore. And I refrain from letting anybody
know, what would I be? It'd be bad, wouldn't it? Well, Paul is saying, I know
how God can be just and justify the ungodly, which is an infinite
more important than a cure for COVID. I know that. And I am a debtor to let all
men know of this, verse 15, so as much as in me is, I'm ready
to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also, for I am not
ashamed of the gospel of Christ. For it, the gospel of Christ,
is the power of God unto salvation. Boy, that interests me. And we're introduced at this
time to this concept of the Jews and the Greeks. That's big in
scripture, isn't it? The Jews and the Greeks. It's the power
of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth, to the Jew first,
and also to the Greek. Now, as we're going to see, The
Jew is the person with a revelation from God, the Bible. The Greek is the person without
a revelation from God, without some written word. The Jews have
the Bible. Sodom had no Bible. The Greeks,
the Gentiles had no revelation from God. Now to both of these
people, Jews and Greeks, me and you, The gospel of Christ is
the only hope. For therein, verse 17, in the
gospel is the righteousness of God revealed. Now that's such
an important term. There's no more important term
in the scripture, the righteousness of God. In the gospel, the righteousness
of God is revealed from faith to faith as it's written, it's
written four times, the just shall live by faith. And the book of Romans tells
us what that means. The just shall live by faith. Now, I think it's very interesting
that there's no attempt in any book in the Bible or in Romans
to prove the existence of God, there is no need. Everyone is
born with that knowledge. Look in verse 20. For the invisible things of him
from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood
by the things that are made even his eternal power and Godhead
so that they are without excuse. Now, we looked at this in Sunday
school this morning out of Psalm 19. Creation says, God is. Everyone can see that. Everyone can see that somebody
all powerful made this place and nobody made him. HE IS ETERNAL. THAT'S NOT SAVING KNOWLEDGE,
BUT IT DOES RENDER A MAN WITHOUT EXCUSE. THE BIBLE MAKES NO ATTEMPT
TO PROVE THE EXISTENCE OF GOD. THE BIBLE BEGINS WITH OUR STATE
BEFORE GOD. SOMEBODY SAYS, I want to know what my purpose
is. I want to know who I am. Well, I can tell you who you
are. That's not hard. And I know what your purpose
is, is to glorify God. Let's get those things out of
the way first. But the question is, what is
my state? What is my personal state? What
is your personal state before the living God? Verse 19 of chapter
three. I'm going to read this and then
we're going to get back to it after looking at some things
said in these first two chapters. Here is my personal state before
God. Not does God exist. What is my
state before God? Now we know Romans 319. Now we know that what things
soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law,
that every mouth may be stopped and all the world, Jew and Gentile,
may become guilty before God. Look up in verse nine. Chapter three, what then, are
we, we Jews, are we better than they, those Gentiles? No, in
no wise, for we have before proved, both Jews and Gentiles, that
they are all under sin. Now I wanna talk just for a few
moments about Jews and about Gentiles, and I must talk first
about Gentiles. They are people without a Bible. Somebody says, well, what about
the heathen that have never had the opportunity to hear the gospel
the way you and I have, that have had no revelation from God? What about people who have not
heard the gospel? Well, Paul tells us about them
in Romans 1 verse 21, because that, when they knew God, these
Gentiles, and really he's talking about the Greek philosophers
at this time, the wisest men the world had to offer, Aristotle,
Plato, Socrates, these men, because that when they knew God, they
saw him from the light of creation, they glorified him not as God,
Neither were thankful. They were not thankful for who
God is, but they became vain in their imaginations and their
foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise,
they became fools and changed the glory of the uncorruptible
God into an image made like to corruptible man and to birds
and forfeited beasts and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave
them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts,
to dishonor their own bodies between themselves who changed
the truth of God into a lie and worshiped and served the creature
rather than or more than the creator who is blessed forever. Now let's look where These people
are described in verse 29, these people with no revelation
from God. The scripture says they're filled,
filled, plumb full, no room for anything else. Being filled with
all unrighteousness, fornication, sexual sin, wickedness, covetousness,
desiring what God hadn't given, maliciousness, full of envy,
murder, debate, deceit, malignity, whispers, backbiters, haters
of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient
to parents, without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural
affection, implacable, unmerciful, who knowing the judgment of God
that they which commit such things are worthy of death not only
do the same but have pleasure in them that do them. Not only
do they enjoy committing sin, they enjoy other people committing
sin and get pleasure from it. Now, what about these people?
What about these people? Are they evil? That description
I just read, is that a bad person? Is that a sinful person? Is that
a wicked person? Look what Paul says next in verse one. Therefore,
thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever that thou judgest.
For wherein thou judgest another, you condemn yourself, for you
the judge do the same things. Now, do you hear what that says?
That person I just read about at the end of Romans one, that's
me and you. That's me. That's you. That's what God says. And for
me to look in judgment toward any of those people, all I'm
doing is condemning myself and exposing myself as a hypocrite. Now that's God's testimony. And these people, look what it
says about them in verse 14. They never had a Bible. Verse
14 of chapter two. For when the Gentiles, which
have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law,
they don't need a written revelation to know the difference between
right and wrong. Everybody knows it's wrong to lie, don't they?
Everybody knows it's wrong to steal. Everybody knows it's wrong
to kill. The commandments of God. Somebody
says, we need to be taught how to live. We already know how
to live. We're born with that knowledge. We're born knowing
the difference between right and wrong. But here's all this
does for these people, which show the law, the work of the
law written in their hearts, their conscience, also bearing
them witness and their thoughts, the meanwhile accusing or excusing
one another. This is all we can come up with,
an excuse or an accusation against ourselves. That's all that does. Well, what about the people with
a revelation from God? Look in verse 17. Here's the
Jews. We talked about the Gentiles.
Here's the Jews. Behold, thou art called a Jew,
and restest in the law, and makest thy boast of God, and knowest
his will, and provest the things that are more excellent being
instructed out of the law. You're confident that you're
a God of the blind, and a light of them which are darkness, and
instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, which has the form
of knowledge, and of the truth and the law. Thou, therefore,
would teachest another. Teachest thou not thyself? Thou that preachest the man should
not steal. Dost thou steal? Thou that sayest
the man should not commit adultery. Dost thou commit adultery? Thou
that abhorrest idols. Dost thou commit sacrilege? You
that make your boast of the law. We've got this revelation from
God. Through breaking the law, dishonorous thou God. Now these
are the people with the revelation from God. If anything, they're worse in their standing before God. Jews and Gentiles. Look what he says in chapter
three, verse nine. And this is why he says this, what we've
been looking at, what then, are we better than they? Are we Jews,
we people with a revelation from God? Are we better than those
who have no revelation from God? No, in no wise, for we have before
proved, both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin as
it is written. This is not man's opinion as
it is written. There's none that understands.
There's none that seeks after God. They're all gone out of
the way. They're together become unprofitable. There's none that
do with good. No, not one. That is what is written. So back to verse 19 of Romans
chapter three, what is our state before God, my state, your state. Now we know that what things so ever the
law saith it saith to them that are under the law, that every
mouth may be stopped, all excuses banished and that every and that all the world may become
guilty before God. Now, let me tell you what that
means. That means if God sent me or
you to hell, just and holy is his name. That's what that means. Can you say amen to that? Do
you believe that? All the world stands guilty before
God. Now we see from the Bible that
our state before a just and holy God is guilty. Is there anything
I can do to change that? That's a good question. That's
an important question. Is there anything I can do to
change that state? Verse 20 answers that question. Therefore, by the deeds of the
law, there shall no flesh be justified in his sight. That's
the key, his sight. The answer to that question is
no. There's nothing you or I can do to change that. No flesh can
be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of
sin. That's all you're left with is the knowledge of sin. Now,
with that in mind, no, there is nothing I can do to change
that. Does that mean there's no hope? Does that mean I just gotta sit
and wait till I die and go to hell? Does that mean there's
no hope for somebody like me? Let's go on reading, verse 21,
but now, the righteousness of God without
the law, without my personal obedience to the law. Listen,
salvation is dependent upon me doing anything, I'm toast. Same,
it's true with you. But now the righteousness of
God without the law, That means I can be saved by
the righteousness of God. That means the righteousness
of God can demand my salvation. That means I can have the righteousness
of God. That's what that means. The righteousness
of God. Without the law, without my obedience
to the law, is manifested, how can I know this is true? How
can I know this is just not pie in the sky? Because it's witnessed
by the law and the prophets. You see, what I'm giving you
right now is the message of the Bible. This is not some denominational
distinctive. This is not what the Baptists
believe or the Catholics believe or the Todd's Road Grace Church
believes. Doesn't have anything to do with it. This is the witness
of the law and the prophets. This is what the Bible has always
taught. This is how a man has always
only been able to approach God. And what is it? Verse 22, even
the righteousness of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ. Now this righteousness of God
is the faith of Jesus Christ. Now is Jesus Christ God? According
to the Bible he is. He's not like God. Somebody says
he's just like God. No, he is God. God the Father
said unto God the Son, thy throne, O God, is forever. A scepter of righteousness is
the scepter of thy kingdom. That's what the Father said to
the Son. And when Jesus Christ obeyed God's law, it's the righteousness
of God. The very righteousness of God. Even the righteousness of God,
which is by the faith of Jesus Christ, you can be saved, not
just by the mercy of God, not just by the grace of God, but
by the righteousness of God, where his righteousness demands
your salvation. You can be saved by having the
very righteousness of God, which is the righteousness of Jesus
Christ as your personal righteousness before God. Oh, I'm interested
in that, aren't you? Well, who's this for? Who's this
for? Well, he tells us in the text.
Even verse 22, the righteousness of God, which is by the faith
of Jesus Christ and to all and upon all them that believe. Now, you know what that tells
me? Faith is the evidence that God has done something for you.
You don't have the right to even suspect that God has mercy for
you if you do not believe his gospel. It's unto all them that
believe. Now here's the big question,
believe what? Believe what? Well, he tells us clearly in
this passage of scripture. There's no difference. For all
have sinned. and come short of the glory of
God. Let's begin right here. Believe what? That there's no
difference. There's no difference between
the preacher and the drug pusher. There's no difference. All have
sinned. And all have come short of the
glory of God. And that describes us all, me
and you. All have sinned. And God is so glorious that sin
is defined as coming short of his glory. All have sinned. Now, what all does that mean?
Let me be real simple. I'm talking about myself. I'm
talking about you. All have sinned. That means All
you have ever done is sinned. That's it. That would describe
every action that ever came from me, every action that ever came
from you. It's sin. Somebody says, I don't
agree with that. Well, sorry. It's still true. It's still true. It means that I cannot not sin. I'm going to go 10 seconds without
sin. Can't be done. Can't be done. You see, you have an evil nature.
I have an evil nature we were born with. A man, because of
his nature, all he does is sin. And he cannot not sin. And let me say this, my sin is
my fault. It's all my fault. I can't blame somebody else.
My sin is all my fault. Until I'm brought to that place
where it's all my fault, I've never asked for mercy. The only
time you ask for mercy is when your sin is all your fault. My sin is all my fault and my
sin renders me in this position. to where I can't look in judgment
down my nose at any sinner on the face of God's earth. That's
what Romans 2, 1 says. You're inexcusable. Whosoever
you are the judge, you the judge doest. And that word is in the
present tense, active voice. Somebody says, I don't do those
things. What do you expect me to believe, God or you? Come
on, I believe God over you. Yeah, you do. You do. I do all
these things. My sin, it's all my fault. And I'm unable to look in judgment. I do it all the time. Get around
me. I don't wanna judge you. Well,
I'm judging you. I'm judging you, you're judging
me. That's so evil, but it's just the case. That's the way
we are, we're so... But I know this, my sin has rendered
me... I got no claims on God. Because
of my sin, I've got no claims on God. If he leaves me and myself,
he's just and right. Amen? Amen. Now let's go on reading. This
is what we believe. This is given to all them that
believe for there's no difference for all have sinned and come
short of the glory of God. But look, we're not stopping
with what I just said. Look at this. being justified
freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ
Jesus. Now, here is the gospel. Remember
the initial question, how can a man be just with God? How can
he be clean, which is born of woman? Well, here's the answer
to that question. Being justified. having been justified. Now this thing of justification,
it's not something you decide to accept. It's not something
that's offered to you. It is the act of God. That's so important. It's the
act of God. God. Who shall lay anything to
the charge of God's elect, it is God that justifies. It's the act of God. And understand
this about justification. If I'm justified, all that bad
stuff I've used to describe us in Romans chapter one and Romans
chapter two, none of it's so with regard to us. If I'm justified,
you know what that means? It means I'm sinless. It means
I'm perfectly righteous before God. It means I have no sin. It means I have no guilt. It
means the very righteousness of God, the law of God demands
my salvation. That's what justification is.
Was there anything I need to do to get this? Being justified,
what's the next word? Freely. The only thing that would disqualify
you from being justified is having something in you that would cause
it. That's the only thing that would disqualify you. Being justified
freely with no reason in you. Freely! Freely! Without cost! Now although it's
free to you, it wasn't free to God. He spared not his own son. Let's go on reading. Being justified
freely by his grace through the redemption, the bloody death,
the sacrificial death, the sin removing death that is in Christ
Jesus, redeemed. redeemed. Now this concept of
redemption, you know, we always read of stories of redemption.
He redeemed himself. He redeemed himself. He's, he's,
he's, he's redeemed himself. Now, wait a minute. The Bible
doesn't know anything about you redeeming yourself, but we're
given the kinsman redeemer in the old Testament. This is where
this comes from. If you lost everything and you
couldn't get it back, you were in trouble. There's not anything
you could do to get it back. But according to the law, if
you had a kinsman redeemer, he had the right to go to that person
who you lost everything to, said, I'm buying it back for them.
They didn't have any choice. This was law. He had to be a
near kinsman. Christ is a near kinsman. The
bone of our bones, flesh of our flesh, the God, man, Christ,
Jesus. He has the right to do it. He has the ability to do
it. And he has the willingness to
do it. The redemption. And listen, if
he redeems you, you're redeemed. There ain't no such thing as
somebody, Christ dying for somebody and paying for their sins and
then winding up going to hell anyway. No, everybody he died
for is redeemed. the redemption that is in Christ
Jesus. Verse 25, whom God hath set forth. Now that word set forth, the
other times it's used in the New Testament, it's translated
purposed. This is God's purpose. This is God's forward nation.
This has always been God's purpose. Christ is the lamb slain from
the foundation of the world. Before there was ever a sinner,
there was a savior. whom God set forth to be a propitiation. Now what in the world does that
word mean? It means a sin-removing sacrifice. He was manifested
to take away our sins, and Him is no sin. He's a sin-removing
sacrifice. You know what that means? That
means if He removed your sin right now before God, you have
no sin, none. He removed it. He separated from
you as far as the east is from the west. It's no more. God set
him forth to be a propitiation. All your sins propitiated, removed. They're no more. Through faith in his blood. Now, here's something that every
believer has in common. We have faith in His blood, don't
we? Do you believe, now let me ask you, do you believe the blood
of Jesus Christ is all that is needed to make you to be clean
before God? Nothing else? Let me repeat that,
nothing else. The blood of Jesus Christ, God's
Son, cleanses us from all sin. Oh, I have faith in His blood,
because of whose blood? Not just some general because
blood was shed because of whose blood was shed. This is the blood
of the God-man. He's incapable of failure. He's
incapable of not having whatever he intended to do. When he said,
it is finished, propitiation accomplished. Sin removed. God set forth purpose to be a
propitiation through faith in His blood to declare His righteousness. And that's so important. Not
to declare His mercy. I'm thankful for His mercy. Not
to declare His grace. I'm thankful for His grace. But
to declare His righteousness. What's that mean? That means
the very attribute of the righteousness of God demands that Todd and
Albert be in heaven. That's what that means. You see,
this is what Christ did. This is the gospel. This is how
man can be just with God. What Christ did. The very righteousness
of God. To declare His righteousness
for the remission of sins that are passed through the forbearance
of God. The long suffering of God. To declare, I say, at this
time, His righteousness. that he might be just and the
justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Now that's what the
gospel declares, God's righteousness, that he might be just and justifier
of him which believeth in Jesus. Now, it is clear that the only
people who will be saved are the people who believe in Jesus,
as he says. Is that clear? No one will be saved but that
person who believes in Christ. Now, how can I have some assurance
that what he did, he did for me? Well, let's begin here, real
briefly. 1 Timothy 1.15 says Christ Jesus
came into the world to save the elect. I didn't say it right, did I?
He did come to save the elect. When we were yet without strength
and due time, Christ died for the elect. I didn't say that
right either, did I? Can you put yourself in this
demographic? When we were yet without strength
in due time, Christ died for the ungodly. If you can put yourself in that
demographic, Jesus Christ died for you. Christ Jesus came into
the world to save sinners. Would that be you? I'm not asking
you if you're a believer. I'm not asking you if you know
Christ died for you. I'm not asking you if you have
saving faith. I'm not asking you if you have the evidence
of the fruit of the spirit. I'm asking you this, are you
a sinner? If you are, Christ died for you
and you're called upon to believe on him as all you need. Verse 27, where is boasting then? Is there something we can take
credit for? It is excluded. It's excluded. We've got closure
on this. There's nothing you can boast
in. Don't worry about it. It's excluded. By what law? Of works? Seriously? Nay, but by the law of faith. I like that word, the law of
faith. You know, every believer's got a law in them and won't let
them look anywhere but Christ. It's part of your nature. It's
a law in you. You can't look anywhere but Christ.
Don't you love the law of faith? It's in your nature. Verse 12. 29, is he the God of the Jews
only? Is he not also of the Gentiles?
Yes, of the Gentiles also. Seeing it's one God which should
justify the circumcision by faith and the uncircumcision through
faith. Do we make void the law through faith? Do we just say
all that law stuff, it's inconsequential, it doesn't matter? Ten commandments
don't matter? God forbid. We establish the
law. You know, the only way you honor
God's law is by looking to Christ as its fulfillment. Christ is
the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth. Do we make void the law through
faith? God forbid, yea, we establish the law. Now, that's the message
of Romans. It deals with a lot of other
things, but they're all related to this. It deals with our fallen
Adam, it deals with union with Christ, it deals with election
and predestination, but it is all a part of this one message,
the message of the Bible, how God can be just and justify the
ungodly. Let's pray. Lord, how we thank you for the
gospel of your son. How we thank you for who you
are. How we thank you for all your glorious attributes. Lord,
how we love and adore the glory of your person. How we love your
way of being just and justifying ungodly sinners through your
gospel. Lord, how we admire your power and your wisdom and your
grace and your love and your justice. Lord, you're altogether
glorious, altogether lovely in the person of your son. We ask
in Christ's name that you would take your word. Lord, the words
of a man are weak, vain words that are utterly ineffectual,
but that you take your word and bless it to our heart and our
understanding for the glory of your name. In Christ's blessed
name, we pray. Amen. Dwayne, come please.